Stephens works on a variety of graphic design projects, from events to social media graphics. She previously worked as a web designer in Laurel and for a variety of small businesses creating branding strategies.

She earned a bachelor's degree in art and design from the University of Southern Mississippi.

What advice would you give people who want to get into the same line of work as you? Don’t be too prideful to do the design jobs you don’t want to do. Make the most of every project and be patient. Also, learn how to communicate with people. Design is probably not the most important tool you will need. Communicate with kindness and understanding. Graphic design is serving others.

Why did you choose to live and work in the Hattiesburg area? Hattiesburg is a great place to build relationships and get to know people, socially and professionally. Also, I primarily stay here for T-Bones’ cold brew.

What do you do in your free time? I love being active! Traveling, kayaking, hiking, running and yoga are things I do often. I also love cooking healthy. Everyone reading this should definitely try to cut sugar out of his or her diet for at least a month. You will thank me.

If you could meet anyone, living or dead, who would it be and why? Tupac, just because I’m curious if he is dead or alive. And Katie Dixon, because she could teach me all that she knows about healthy cooking and maybe we can become best friends in the process.

If you could go back 10 years and give a younger you tips or advice on life, work or anything in general, what would it be? Don’t be scared! Sometimes things don’t work out the way you plan and that is probably for the best. Failure isn’t the end.